blogil: January 2009

At the airport again- and nothing happened during the car rental return or check in- since something always goes wrong- I am troubled by this

My only comforting though is that I am switching planes in Atlanta (and with delta,,, the worse combination imaginable)- karma knows this and gives me a break for now.

This is a beautiful day- only 48 (8-10 C) but compared to last week- I feel like the middle of the Sahara at noon.

This Fahrenheit dude is strange.

Mr Celsius was logical- let’s take water- 0 is freezing point, 100 boiling point- a very metric way,

Kelvin is also logical- he figured- let’s take the ultimate freezing point- -273.15 and that is 0- also logical- just very annoying in chemistry class

But Fahrenheit had to be unique- he said- let’s take some random mixture of water and ammonium chloride- that is 0 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fahrenheit)

Why that? I don’t know- if only he had nitroglycerin the values would be different- so now we are stuck with 32 as freezing point- which makes no sense. Why was I thinking about this- because last week it was -13F – which is around -25C- (not counting the wind factor…brrr…) the Russian community here goes back to Moscow to catch some sun.

Probably from someone related to Fahrenheit- came Mr or Ms Grade- who invented the grade system.

A=Axelent, B=bravo, C= cee private teacher, D=dumb ass, F=fail

I my self – rarely fail- but rarely get A’s either- very solid B- student

But changing my Fs to Cs is not always a good thing

I arrived to the savannah airport earlier this week, went to get my car, got it. Went to my designated space (F4) - and no car!- I verified there was no invisible car there- and used the panic button to scout the area and no go (also nowhere to go, since… no car).

So I went back to the counter- stood in line again – and debated myself if I can skip the line or not- it was a short line so I decided to wait

The counter guy looked shocked and went with me to the lot- where now to my surprised – stood a car in my space- not my car- just some car- meant for someone else- the counter guy tried harder to think- then his eyes lit- oh- you ordered from the web- so your F4 is actually C4- … on the other side of the airport- of course… so being a preferred customer- I took my bags and went to the other side- luckily this is a small airport.

The explosive C4 spot wasn’t much better- as that to didn’t have a car, so I tried the panic button again to prevent myself from panicking and something flashed in the distance- apparently the try harder counter guy said C27- I just heard C4- I can see how I got it wrong.

My last trip to savannah – I didn’t get to see the city which was said to be very nice- filled with history , lots of movies scenes and attractions- not again I told my self and took out the new GPS. After sadly returning Wally to its former Master, I didn’t get my own- but Alla’s birthday was this week, so for her birthday, I got a GPS from her parents- I am asking for my birthday – a nice necklace to return the favor.

So I turn Bondi on (at this point it didn’t have a name) and looked for my hotel- bondi just sat there and said nothing, so I drove to a near by area which has lots of hotels, and bondi still sat there like an inanimated object – so I did what I do- I entered a random street in my designated city (a suburb of savannah- assuming hotels would be noticeable- they usually are in the small towns) so my road let me through small street and a railroad track- of course had a train on it-which went and went to no end- 7 minutes I waited- the train moved and slowed down- then stopped- no body honked- a minute later the train moved on and I made it across, and no hotel- now in the city, bondi decided that I had enough and found it.

So I went back through the tracks(no train this time) and got to the next exit from which I came- so I named it bondi (since we were not bonding well- I miss Wally) wally was a germin, a name with no special meaning to me- and Bondi is a Magellan- so I looked it up-

Did you know that Magellan never made it home?- he did pass to the other side of south America , but lost (not his way) but his life on the way- so

What do you expect from the device. Columbus is not a good name either- he was totally lost. I think vasco the gama new what he was doing,

Air port update- I am on the plane- and just got word- that the plane will wait on the run way … for 15-20 minutes in delta time (just like C to F) so you add 32 and multiply by 9/5 and get a lot of wasted time)- I am now in Tallahassee , Florida- a very small airport- these are usually ok- there are no other planes- an no reason for delay other then the fact that this is a delta flight (to Atlanta) , and worse- I am on it.

They say we should make our transfer planes from Atlanta leaving from 8:15, I am do at 8:25- so I am not hopeful.

Hibernating..

Sorry for the delay- we are now in the air- short flight- right after sunset- and the horizon is bright red.

Back to start of week- few work related things and I still didn’t get to see savannah.

So I was working late and drove late to my next destination. crossing the border to Florida and seeing the ‘sunshine state’ sign after midnight is annoying- there is no sun now- but the next day brought me lots of sun-Florida was the state I visited the most in previous trips to lalaland- but my first time since I moved here- and already gone.

Today I was in a little town- and expected the usual- but this town- had nice colonial houses, nice town center- and lots of moss on the trees – they call it Spanish moss – it’s a fungus which is found on every tree- and the trees are dripping them- impressive site-the locals told me you can remove it by hand, but if you kill it – the tree dies to- so please leave it there- it looks nice- I have photos- soon to deliver.

As you know I read a lot – and my pharmacist librarian has shown me a new way to read- books on CD- for the long drives- so I listened to 2 hours of a book on archeologists in Egypt in the early 20’s – interesting book- and a great way to pass the time. Plus, there Is no one to leave page marks on the CD to mark their place (don’t like it), but if the CD jumps, the narrator jumps as well.

If you haven’t tried it- this is how it goes. “and she walked to the other side of the room, the shadows were creeping in, she looked around the corridor and “recalculating, turn left on exit 85” … as bondi attempts it’s own book on Crappy device.

Don’t get me wrong- I appreciate the gift a lot- and as soon as I can- it will be replaced by a brand new Wally 2- since only snowball 2 can have the same name as a previous cat by the same name ( snowball is the Simpsons cat, it died- the cat you often see in the show is snowball 2- in one episode , snow ball 2 died, and 3,4,5 were adopted quickly and each died soon after in bad ways (very doomed episode)- till the last cat- was named snow ball 2 also- and life went back to normal- that is Simpsons normal). So I will need a new name- will see how it behaves.

So I would not reach my destination this night- 1 am is a good time to stop driving- so I tried bondi and asked it to find us a hotel

Bondi doesn’t find hotels easy- and though I see signs for hotels- till I get tiered – and it finds me just one in the next exit- so I pull over and pass 3 building with hotel type names-which can’t be hotel according to bondi- and the Ramada which was the one hotel it did find- dropped me off in the middle of an intersection- “you have arrived” – with no Ramada in sight – I stopped by the knights inn- which is to my experience – the cheapest motel chain (cheaper then red roof, super 8, motel 6)- and with that- still clean- so was this one- these hotels are older and less maintained- but clean is the one thing I want from a hotel- so good night.

In the previous week- it was colder then the elders of Cleveland remember- I was in Detroit with few colleagues- some from Cleveland and some from Israel- soon they all got mixed with speaking English to me and Hebrew to the locals- like I do from time to time.

We exposed them to great American healthy food- sub way, and the next day more healthy food (more sub way) since it was closest to where we worked.

Detrotoilate as a colleague called it “the worst city in the world” from the same source- and I can’t find an uglier city (from the major ones I mean)- there are lots of smaller worse places (like east Berlin before the wall, or HolonJ)- but it has a casino.

One of the guys had his first US trip- and a casino is an attraction, and another likes to gamble to we went to the MGM grand. I assumed that like the one in vegas- this casino will have a cinema- this is MGM- but sadly no- they just abuse the MGM name.

So while the others were contributing funds to the American economy in the slots or Texas hold’em- I went with ziv and walked around and got a nice meal. Some drank a bit, some lost more money and we went back tired and broke.

When we got in to the casino – everyone went in fine- only ziv was stopped and asked for ID- you should have seen the smile on his face from the compliment- then he got his hat off- and the gourd let him in right away- no ID necessary,.

We were also working for a while- and these guys are all handy- except me- which is left handy - nothing goes right- I understand what had to be done- but the fingers won’t listen- same problem like the piano or typing

I type pretty fast, but unlike it is meant to be, I use almost only my index fingers- the rest just sit there helpless- so now we had to fit small screws in small locations- forcing my de-evolved fingers to work for a while.

So this is how you replace a CPMC card (CPMC is crashing, powerless, something with M, Card):

You take out the 1^st small screw, drop the screw in to a tight place, look for it for 5 minutes, find it, remember you lost the washer too, look for 5 minutes, don’t find it. Put screw aside- repeat process for all 4 screws.

Take old CPMC out (the old and the new have a clear distinction- one of them has another connector on the top right, so after removing the card, you retrack the screws , take the new one- start putting them together- and in the way- drop a screw…. See above….once all 4 screws are in place- you start connecting the wire- then notice- the connector on the right (which should not be on the new card)- you try to think could they have been careless and gave you the wrong card- “no” , comes to mind- then you realize you just put back the same card you took out. So mouth a curse to yourself , again- take out screw….drop…. get right card, put it in, connect the wires- now it’s right. This card is but a part of what we did there and every other part encountered same problems (for me) so it was fun- lucky we had those subway breaks.

it was time to return to Cleveland, so we drove to the airport – for those who flew elsewhere, and I , to get my car to drive back. So it took us 2.5 hours to get from Detroit to….detroit- the other side of the city and it’s airport

it was very cold, and icy- and lots of cars, slid to the sides, so lots and lots of traffic- lucky I was not driving yet.- but 2.5 hours for 10-20 miles is exhausting. This is what they meant by hell (Detroit) freezing over. So everyone made it on time. I got my car with no incidents- and drove- the road was clear from now on- though icy- happy with no traffic and looking for my 3 hours drive home-I headed south- till

a jam- for another hour and a half I passed 2-3 miles- and this on the main highway from Detroit south- I finally got to the exit- to find out that they closed all 3 lanes- and headed traffic to the exit- with no explanation- or detour signs- so I exited and made my way through Toledo to the next exit and then back to the high way

sorry- update- the steward just announced the details on this flight- to Atlanta- this is an important update since I am now in Atlanta – so flying to where I am does not seem like the best way to fly- this is the busiest airport in the world (took the title from Chicago)- so I would not be surprised!

Ok- so I got back to the high way- to see some truck turned on the road- and the cause of my long long delay- and 3 hours later, I was home.

Total of 8.5 hours instead of 3-4.

This was not the end of my driving week as 2 days later I left to east Pennsylvania – only 6 hours each way- made it back half way-

So broke my record- 9 driving hours in a day- I don’t want to break this record again- but I probably will soon.

On Saturday instead of sleeping in- I drove the remaining 3 hours- then took Ziv shopping.

I saw a commercial for ‘emergency electronic sale’ special event- in the trade center- the adds promised great deals – and more bla bla

Here in the open area it was windy- and now that I was up north- I have all the winter gear I could ever need- the problem is that I never take it with me- luckily ziv has a spare hat- so we went in- and saw most people leaving with no bags- this behavior is very irregular to the shopper sapience- so with freezing lips- we asked – and the leaving people said – long lines- no deals- doesn’t worth it – so we left the “special event” and went to a regular mall/ Ziv got his daily dose of caffeine , I got my daily dose of hot chocolate, and we both got gifts.

Dinner at the burnedBurger pub (another place not to revisit) and we finished with slum dog milioner.

I read and liked the book- but the movie is very good as well.

Later we swapped equipment – since ziv would leave the next morning early- and I went to the math room to study.

Later that night ziv calls – I forgot something at his car , and he had stuff in mine

We agreed to meet early morning to swap so he could leave- the problem- my phone was critically on low battery, my car charger gave his last charged breath recently, and my charger itself was among the thing ziv had in his car. So I shut off my phone and used Alla’s phone- to wake up early. You can’t trust a phone- I woke later than planned, turned on my cell and called ziv- who was panicking and almost had poor Jason drive 35 minutes on Saturday to get him spare stuff that he needed (or he could use the other employee who leaves close to the office, other than me- but I guess he chose not to wake up Mark l ). Lucky I woke in time and Ziv was on they- - 5 minutes their he says- I go down quickly without clearing my kidneys (and I need too) since he is in a hurry- and go out- and wait, while dancing to distract my self- I call- and he stopped to clear his kidneys and get a coffee shot!- we swap, he leaves for the airport and I go quickly to the kidney depository.

Yesterday was a day of change- as Obama rose to power- it is strange- the last prime ministers in Israel- I usually heard the inauguration speech- then the next time- said- what has he done for us lately- we don’t think the prime minister is special- on the contrary- he is probably not special and should be dethroned

Americans are different- at least with Obama- they treat him like a god- you have the believers- Obama will change everything – and the hedonists who just wait for Obama to fall. The train ride to DC- thousands of people try to watch the messiah- I think he will fail since expectations are impossibly high. I don’t think he can bring change by himself- he can steer , but change comes from the people- if he can inspire change quickly and start moving things- and people and media start pitching in- then there will be change (which will be attributed to Obama)- if they want budge- then he will fail. By then- I mean- head of companies, governors, politicians (dirty and the rest of them alike)- but faith in the messiah is all time high- so maybe…

So while Obama was talking change- I was in Springfield , Georgia- replacing CPMC card and stuff like that.

I had to remove some metal piece which was in the way- and couldn’t – and had to stick some screw beneath it – i somehow managed to jam the screw in half way and couldn’t get it out- so drove to town- to get more tools.

If you remember few months back- I got a tool- long LN wrench somewhere from the AutoZone- in Mississippi- there I found it easy- I took my time returning it - only 3 weeks after when I visited that place again- karma knows- so this tool is nowhere to be found- it would help me so much- so I have regular LNs which stuck to edges- or get my fingers stuck in edges- and slow the already slow process more.

With no Long LNs- I get short LNs, and some other things that might help and indeed they do- I manage to release my rebellious screw-and only wasted 2 hours on it (which is the estimated time for the whole process)- the rest was smoother- though I had some issues- and the 2 hour job was finished in 4.5 hours- without removing the metal piece, but having to remove (and put back) other pieces to make room.

So now with renewed energy from not eating lunch or drinking enough today- and anger I moved to the 2^nd fix (same thing on another device)

And I am no longer taking crap from any metal piece- I removed it with violence in minutes, worked in record time (for me) and was ready to close in under 90 minutes- I was in the last step- the burning of the card- then something happened- they said burn (=load software) on the card, and I burned= fried the card. So more time wasted figuring out what went wrong.

Which meant – replacing CPMC card- drop screw…..see some pages above… trouble shooting – and trying to get a spare card from somewhere- looking for people, with spare cards and access to fedex- none found – so had to use the old card- and after putting it back…drop screw…. I don’t know how I managed to fry that one too.

Just so you know- while Obama is speaking on our current state of affairs- I am receiving currents from everywhere- I would laugh at myself if I could- I get static electricity from everything recently- carpets, walls, my cell phone, other people. I should be wearing gloves at all times- I do have 3 pairs now (ski, just cold, and work gloves- never had the need for gloves before)- but I always leave them home.

Do you know that plastic piece you stick in the outlet- to prevent kids from being zapped- I got zapped from it- it’s impossible- it is made from plastic- and was made to prevent current- but it got me! Maybe because I don’t like statistics- I am zapped against all odds.

So I think I was zapping the card myself to oblivion- luckily there was one more old card- and the job was done- after more screws…. At 10 pm.

So will you remember what you did the day Obama was crowned the god of change?

I will- I was in Springfield getting screwed, changing cards, and getting electrocuted.

Then at 10 :15 I got my lunch- in a local

Sorry about to land- hibernating again- I hope its Lafayette and not Atlanta?

Landed- yes lafayete…

So lunch was in a local burger type place- the aitress somehow guess I was from out of town- don’t know how

Ok- got to go- suitcase arriving- got my car- so far no problems- don’t worry- it will change…

Oh- had no time for proper meal in Atlanta- had to chose quickly from popeye’s chicken (good biscuits) to Ben and geris- so had no choice really

They have a new flavor now – ‘yes peCan’ butter with pecans- genius name- with proceeds going to some fund that supports needy families- like the bushes and the rest of the unemployed or something else- so I had no choice – I had to eat it for charity

1^st time in Louisiana- one day is not enough to say I was here- so let’s see what happens…

Adios from Lafayette.